Home for Christmas
by CullensPrincess
Summary: All Bethy Cullen wants for Christmas is her daddy home. Will she get her wish? Will her Mummy?


**Disclaimer- I own nothing but Bethy, Liam and Bonnie the puppy! **

**This is a little one shot I thought up when trying to write updates for my other stories. Due to my beta being ill she hasn't had a lot to do with this so any and all mistakes are mine but I tried. **

Home for Christmas.

A thud and a cry greeted me as I climbed out of the car.

"Bethy I told you not to get out of the car," I said, exasperatedly as I scooped up my little girl from the icy pavement.

"I sowry mama but I essited. I wanna see daddy!" she said, wiping her tear stained cheeks with her mittened hands as her puppy Bonnie danced around my feet.

"I know baby, I am too but you need to be careful. We don't need to be going to the hospital now or we'll miss daddy's call!" I chided.

"Okay mama," She nodded. I kissed her forehead and put her on the floor next to me, taking her hand and keeping an eye on both her and the little puppy trailing her. I headed round the back of the car and to the other door, opening it and reaching inside for my other baby, Liam, who was sleeping in his car seat. I unbuckled the seat, lifting it out and carrying it up to the decorated house. There were lights up on the outside of the house with a few green garlands and a wreath on the door. We headed up to the house dodging ice and snow before I opened the door. Bethy giggled as we made a point of stamping the snow off our shoes while Bonnie lay on the bed inside the door, waiting to be dried off by Bethy before I would let her further in the house, as she had been trained to do.

"Okay," I started, as I crouched to help Bethy out of her hat, coat, gloves and boots. "You dry off Bonnie while I make a start on dinner okay?" I said. She nodded, her dark blonde curls bouncing around her shoulders now the hat wasn't holding them in place.

"Okay mama," She said, grabbing an old towel from the floor next to the bed and attacking Bonnie. I hung her coat up and put her gloves and hat in the drawers underneath along with mine before hanging my coat and taking Liam further into the house. I went into the living room with him, placing his seat on the sofa and unstrapping him before unzipping his coat and lifting him out of it and into my arms. I gently kissed his forehead before taking him through to the kitchen with me and putting him in the swing where I could see him. He slept on and I left him while I got started on dinner for Bethy and I.

I put together a quick dinner of pasta and garlic bread before calling Bethy through who had been playing with Bonnie in the hallway. She climbed up onto her pink booster seat at the table in the kitchen and settled down, waiting for her dinner.

"There you go sweetie," I said, placing the food in front of her.

"Mama when will we see daddy?" she asked, as I sat across from her with my own plate.

"Soon baby. He is supposed to be calling us at six-thirty tonight, but remember he might be delayed so we have to be patient," I said, hoping I wasn't lying. Edward was deployed overseas at the minute but was due to return home soon. His return date had been changed so many times though I had stopped getting my hopes up. The commander I had spoken with however promised to try and get him back for Christmas. I hoped that was true because I think it would break Bethy's little heart if her daddy wasn't here for Christmas. Liam was now ten days old and I hate the fact that he hasn't met his daddy. Especially given how excited Edward had been about having a baby boy. Giving birth without Edward had been without a doubt the hardest thing I had ever done. With Christmas being only four days away we wanted Edward home and now. After dinner I put a film on for Bethy and fed Liam before putting him down in his cot asleep and then grabbing the phone to ring my contact with Edward's platoon.

"Hey Bella," Angela sighed.

"Hey Angie, any news?" I asked. Angela was married to Ben who was the commander of the platoon. She acted as a go between for the wives behind and our husbands overseas. She kept us up to date with the latest changes with deployments and what was happening overseas. If someone got injured generally Angela was the first to know. If the dates for deployment or when they were returning changed Angie knew first and told us. She would have definite times for when they would be landing, even if there were always last minute delays.

"No nothing solid I'm afraid. I'm sorry Bella. I know how much Bethy wants him home," She said apologetically.

"Okay well if you get any news please let us know?" I asked.

"I will. I'll ring you tomorrow with updates," She promised. I hung up and went to see Bethy trying to work the laptop. It was getting close to when Edward would call so I set up the Skype and logged in, waiting for him to do the same. At 1840 the laptop in front of us started ringing and Bethy nearly threw herself of the sofa to answer it.

"Daddy!" She squealed.

"Hi baby!" he sighed happily. His hair was getting longer and he looked tired. And not just physically tired but maybe emotionally and mentally. He needed to come home so we could fix him up properly.

"Daddy I miss you!" Bethy whined.

"I miss you to baby. I'll be home soon though," he told her.

"Pwease?" she asked.

"I'm trying my best baby," He soothed. "So tell me everything. I hear you have a brother!" He said excitedly, trying to both engage and cheer her up.

"Oh Liam!" She yelled. "Mama go get him!" She said tapping me on the leg none to gently.

"Okay bossy!" I laughed, meeting Edward's eye in the camera. We never spoke straight off, letting Bethy get her daddy time in before she disappeared and I would chat with him. He winked at me before I headed off to get Liam from where he was in his bouncer across the room. Bethy was telling Edward all about her new brother and how he cried at night sometimes and how she helped me to change his nappy and give him a bath. I took Liam over and sat next to Bethy, turning Liam so his back was to my front.

"Liam look, it's Daddy," I said softly, kissing his head. Edward's eyes went glassy for a few seconds before he blinked the tears away.

"Hi baby boy!" Edward said softly. "Oh Bella he's gorgeous." "He wants to meet his daddy," I told Edward.

"Oh you have no idea how much I want to be there now baby. It's ridiculous. I need to get out of this place."

"I know, just a while longer and then you're back for good though," I said, trying to perk him up a little.

"I know Bella," He sighed, his green eyes so sad.

Bethy chatted with him for a while longer, telling him about her mornings at pre-school with her cousin Lily, Edward's brother Emmett's daughter. After a while she began yawning and lent back on the pillow behind her, pulling a blanket up over herself, Liam was asleep curled up against my chest while I watched my baby and her daddy interact. He managed to soothe her to sleep from miles away, softly singing to her as she dosed off on the sofa.

"She's gone," I whispered to him. "Gimme one second okay?" I asked. He nodded and smiled gently. I laid Liam in the Moses basket in the living room and covered him over with a blanket before laying Bethy more comfortably on the sofa. I grabbed the laptop and headed into the kitchen.

"So tell me everything," I said, sitting at the breakfast bar.

"I don't know baby. I think I'm just sick of being gone. I miss you and my children. For god sake I missed the birth of my first son. You had to give birth all alone and now you're doing everything for him on your own and taking care of Bethy. None of this is fair on any of us. You in particular," He emoted in a rush.

"Oh Edward," I whispered.

"I'm sorry baby," He breathed. "Nothing feels right when I'm away and I hate it," he said, ripping at his hair roughly, as he always did when stressed.

"Edward you just need to make it a little longer. Do you have your orders yet?" I asked.

"No the commander will give us to them tonight but I just get the feeling it's not gonna be what I want to hear and I can't take anymore disappointment, and I can't take seeing the disappointment on your face when I give you bad news," I had thought I had been covering my disappointment well but clearly not.

"Edward you'll be home as soon as you can. You need to just try and get on. I can't have your head elsewhere while you're in a warzone. I need you to focus. Bethy and Liam need you to focus," I told him.

"I know baby. And I am. It's when we have down time that my thoughts catch up to me." "That's fine but you'll be home soon and then we're never letting you go. I think Bethy is likely to cling to you for weeks," I laughed.

"I _miss _her," He nearly whimpered.

"I know, she misses you."

"And I miss you… _so _much."

"I know. I miss you. I need you back in one piece so Edward you _need_ to focus. Please," I whispered.

"I will baby. The commander is calling us in now. I'll try and ring you tonight if I can."

"Okay baby. I love you."

"I love you too baby," He replied. I smiled at him and disconnected the call reluctantly. I sat in the kitchen for a while, thinking over everything Edward had said. I knew he wasn't happy but I didn't realise how much. He needed to come home. Now.

After a while I went into the living room where Bethy was sleeping curled up under her blanket, her blonde hair splayed around her head like a little halo. I gently scooped her up into my arms and carried her up to her bedroom where I changed her out of her jeans and jumper and into a pair of snowflake pyjamas before slipping her under her covers in her new big girl bed. We had decided to get her out of the cot once we found out I was pregnant with Liam. It made it easier towards the end of my pregnancy when I was alone and didn't have to keep trying to bend to lift her out of the cot in the morning.

A few hours later, after feeding Liam again and giving him a bath before putting him in the Moses basket in my room for the night I slid into bed, needing a good night's sleep. It took a while for me to fall asleep, thinking about Edward and how he was feeling. Eventually I succumbed to the exhaustion that went along with a toddler and a newborn and fell asleep. After a few late night feedings with Liam, Bethy crawled under the covers with me around 7am.

"Morning mama," She whispered, laying on Edward's pillow, folding her hands under her face.

"Morning baby. Guess what!" I said excitedly.

"What?" she asked, her eyes lighting with curiosity.

"It's nearly Christmas!" I whispered. She shrugged before crawling closer to me, resting her head against my chest.

"What's up baby, you're normally so excited about Christmas," I said, kissing her forehead.

"Want daddy," She wailed before breaking down into heart breaking sobs.

"I know baby. I know," I whispered, cuddling her close while she settled down. Eventually she fell back to sleep and I left her in my bed while I tended to Liam, using the time to have a bath myself and get ready for the day. Bethy woke up a while later and got dressed. I kept her off of pre-school that morning and we spent the day watching movies and snuggling on the sofa.

Later that evening Edward's parents and siblings came over for dinner. After a lovely dinner I put Bethy and Liam in bed before going to join Edward's parents downstairs.

"So how has Bethy been?" Esme asked.

"With Liam absolutely fine but we had a bad morning."

"What happened?" Carlisle asked.

"Well we spoke to Edward last night on Skype and he was so sad and missing us completely and Bethy must have caught on because she kept telling him that she missed him and wanted him home. He sang her to sleep and then this morning she crawled into bed with me and burst into tears asking for her daddy. She hasn't done that since just after he left. I kept her home today and now the pre-school is shut so she won't go back till the New Year but she has been tearful and sad all day," I said.

"It's to be expected that she will miss her father. He's been gone a long time for her. And I would think seeing him last night has bought all her emotions forward and because he was upset it's probably made her worse," Carlisle summarised, the doctor in him taking over.

"She'll be fine. Kids are resilient and like adults they do have bad days," He finished.

"I know, it's just hard to see. Especially when I know there is no where he wants to be more than here," I said.

"He'll be home soon. I'm sure of it," Esme said with a nod.

"I hope you're right," I said quietly. They left not long later and I locked the house up and headed upstairs and into Bethy's room to check on her. She was cuddled under the blankets with her picture of her and Edward taken just before this deployment gripped in her little hands. I pulled the covers up over her shoulder to keep her warm before kissing her forehead and leaving, closing the door behind me. I fed Liam before putting him back down in his cot and heading to bed myself. It's always hard to go to bed without Edward beside me and tonight was harder than normal. The first few nights Bethy and I slept in her bed as it was too difficult to be here without him.

"Mama," Bethy whispered, nudging me gently. It was three am and I hadn't long gone back to bed after feeding Liam.

"Yes baby?" I whispered, seeing her standing at the side of my bed with a mad case of bedhead, similar to her father, clutching his picture and her blanket.

"I sweep wif you?" she asked.

"Sure sweetie. Climb in," I said, moving the quilt out of the way and letting her climb into bed. She snuggled close to me and pressed her head to my chest.

I was somewhere between being conscious and asleep when I was sure I heard a noise downstairs. I left Bethy curled up in the bed and looked in on Liam who was now asleep in my room in the basket. I grabbed a dressing gown and headed downstairs, cursing the stupid dog as I went, sure it was her messing about.

"Bonnie!" I whisper yelled.

"No not bonnie," My favourite voice called from the living room. I looked up to see Edward step into my line of vision, still dressed in army fatigues but smiling brightly.

"Oh my god Edward!" I whispered, throwing myself at him.

"Bella," He sighed, wrapping his arms around me tightly and burying his face in my neck as I took in his scent.

"Oh my god you're here! How? I don't understand!" I said, pulling back enough to press my lips to his. His mouth opened to mine immediately and we kissed deeply in the hallway. His hands slid down to my ass and lifted enough for me to wrap my legs around his waist and then he carried us through to the living room. He sat on the sofa, holding me in his lap. I pulled away from our kiss and buried my head in his neck, just breathing him in and being with him. This was what I had missed. Him being here. This was what I needed. Just him.

"Oh I've missed you," I whimpered pathetically.

"I know but I'm home. And I'm never leaving again," He said, guiding my face to his for a kiss. Footsteps upstairs alerted us to the fact we weren't the only ones awake. I pulled back to see Edward's excited smiling face.

"She's up," I whispered, climbing off his lap and going to intercept her. "Stay here," I said with a smile. He nodded and moved to stand by the tree Bethy and I had decorated that day.

"Hey baby," I said, lifting her off the stairs. "What are you doing up?" I asked.

"You gone. I miss you," She said, cuddling into my neck.

"Oh I'm sorry baby. But guess what? Santa has been and left you an early Christmas present to try and cheer you up. Do you want to open it?" I asked. Her eyes lit up and she nodded excitedly.

"Pwease mama!" she said.

"Okay why don't you see what is under the tree then?" I asked setting her on her feet. I led her into the living room, making sure to block her view, while Edward excitedly sat next to the Christmas tree. I moved aside and turned to see my daughter's reaction. She stopped dead in shock, mouth hanging open before a slow smile spread across her face.

"Daddy!" She screamed excitedly running across the room and throwing herself at Edward who caught her with ease.

"Hi princess," He whispered, kissing her forehead. She held him in a vice grip, her hands bunching his shirt tightly.

"Daddy, you're back! I missed you. Mama Santa listened!" she giggled, turning to face me.

"What do you mean baby?" I asked.

"Wewl I asked Santa wast night for daddy to come home and wook he's wistened!" she said. Edward was smiling indulgently at his daughter, his eyes never leaving her little face.

"I see baby," I replied as a cry came from upstairs.

"Uh oh! Wiam hungwy." Bethy said.

"He is, I'll go get him while you play with daddy," I said, kissing both of them on the head before heading upstairs to Liam. I lifted him from the basket and changed his nappy before redressing him in a new onesie I had bought for when he met daddy. It was white, red and blue with the words 'Daddy's number one for hugs and cuddles' on the front. We went downstairs to be with the others and found them sat on the sofa, whispering secrets to each other while Bethy sat on Edward's legs, her tummy pressed to his. She used to sit like that when she was a baby with Edward.

"Wook daddy," Bethy said, looking up at where Liam and I were standing. Edward held his arms out and took Liam from me, laying him in his arms between himself and Bethy, looking down on him.

"God, he's better than any picture or video link could ever portray," Edward whispered. Bethy lent down and kissed her little brother's head before climbing off Edward's lap and coming over to me.

"I hewp," She said, knowing I would need to make up a bottle.

"Sure baby," I said, lifting her to my hip and taking her to the kitchen with me. We made up the bottle and warmed it through before Bethy checked it on her wrist, as she had seen me do many times before deeming it okay for her brother. She ran the bottle over to Edward who expertly fed our son for the first time. Bethy sat on my lap while Edward bonded with Liam. The excitement seemed to be slowly wearing off and she was getting tired.

"Let's go to bed," Edward whispered, once Liam had been burped. "Can we take them in with us? I just need them close," Edward said as I stood with a sleepy Bethy.

"Wif mama and daddy," Bethy mumbled.

"Yeah baby," I said, kissing her head and nodding to Edward. "Bethy had been in with me anyway," I said. He nodded and we headed upstairs. I laid Liam in his Moses basket while Edward lay Bethy on the bed.

"I'm gonna shower baby. Gimme ten minutes," Edward said tiredly.

"We'll be waiting," I said as Bethy reached out for him. I pulled her to me while he went into the bathroom.

"Daddy's coming. Let him shower," I told her gently, kissing her forehead. She nodded and cuddled close to me under the covers.

"I knew it mama," She whispered.

"Knew what baby?" I smiled.

"Daddy promised!" She giggled. I nodded and pulled her close, letting the warmth of my child and the welcome sound of my husband in the shower soothe me. A while later his warm body slid into the bed behind me, moving close and pressing his bare chest to my back and sliding his pyjama clad legs between mine. His hand grasped one of Bethy's and we all slipped off to sleep, finally whole.

**Merry Christmas people! Probably no update before Christmas but I'm working on stuff for the New Year :)**


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